Werner10.32

Biology, Psychology and Anthropology

Anthropological Studies

A second possibility is that the cultural differences are not really so great. The apparent incompatibility between the biological and cultural arguments may simply be a question of their dealing with different phenomena. Biologists are more interested in sexual orientation — that is, what sexually attracts individuals or is behind their fantasies. On the other hand, anthropologists are more interested in sexual practices — that is, who has sex with whom, and what people actually do in these sexual relations. Anthropologists are also extremely interested in sexual identity — that is, how cultures define individuals, and how individuals see themselves. In both practices and identity there is certainly a great deal of cultural variation. But we know much less about the cross-cultural variation in orientation as defined here. The differences among these concepts are not always clear in the works of different scholars. For example, Herdt (1993 p.xlvii) states that "Identity includes feelings, ideas, goals and sense of self" (italics in original). Money and Ehrhardt (1972) often speak of sexual "identity" without distinguishing this from "orientation" and without considering the influence of culture in forming these identities.